Joe's heartbreak ‘I'M DOING THIS FOR MUM'

The actor reveals his family’s tragic diagnosis

- Sebastian van der Zwan

When Joe Naufahu stepped out of the plane at Kerikeri on his way to film Celebrity Treasure Island, the Game Of Thrones star was greeted by a Northland tourism billboard featuring his own face.

“I grabbed a quick snap in front of it,” he grins. “That was a cool campaign. Ever since then, I’ve always used my holidays to come up north. I love it here. It’s beautiful, man.”

But Treasure Island won’t be a relaxing vacation for the 43-year-old actor and gym owner – Joe’s taking it seriously in order to raise money for Breast Cancer New Zealand, an organisation that’s been close to his heart since his beloved mother Agnes, 71, was diagnosed with the disease in 2011.